Creamy, sweet and oh so zingy, this Homemade Passion Fruit Curd is an absolute delight! It's so quick and easy to make too, and can be used in so many ways. Sometimes known as passion fruit butter, this smooth and zesty curd has such wonderful flavour. You can add it to baked good like cakes, cupcakes, pavlovas and more. Spread it on toast, or drizzle it over some yoghurt. There are so many ways to enjoy it!

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Ingredient Tips & Equipment Information

Unless you have access to a lot of passion fruits, I recommend using a pre-prepared juice/puree for this recipe. This is because you will only get a very small amount of fresh juice from each passion fruit, so you will need a lot of them. Make sure the juice or puree that you use is mostly real passion fruit juice, and not mostly water or sugar. I use this ready made passion fruit puree which is 90% passion fruit.
This recipe uses caster sugar, but you can use granulated sugar too. Just don't use golden caster sugar, or any type of brown sugar to make this curd, as this will affect the flavour and colour of it.
I use a mix of whole eggs and yolks in this recipe. This balances out the richness of the egg yolks and also gives the curd a beautiful texture.
I recommend using unsalted butter to make this curd, it's also better to use cold butter as it helps the passion fruit curd cool down and thicken faster.
The lime zest and juice are optional, but I recommend them as they really bring out the passion fruit flavour and add extra zing.
Although I provide cup measurements, I highly recommend weighing your ingredients out using digital kitchen scales. It is the most accurate way to measure ingredients and will ensure the best results. Digital scales are very low cost and can be purchased for around £12 ($16.50).
For teaspoon (tsp) and tablespoon (tbsp) measurements, please use measuring spoons and not the type of spoons you eat with. Again this will ensure accuracy and provide the best results.

For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.

How to make Homemade Passion Fruit Curd

Put the passion fruit puree, lime zest and juice, caster sugar, eggs and egg yolks into a pan and mix together with a whisk. Heat the mixture on low, stirring gently but continuously until the mixture thickens. This takes around 5-8 minutes depending on your hob and the heat level, and a great way to test it is by dipping a wooden spoon in and using your finger to create a line through the mixture on the spoon. If the line remains and the other mixture on the spoon doesn't drip into it, then the curd is done. Take the mixture off the heat and add the cold butter, stir until the butter has melted and fully combined into the mixture. Place the passion fruit curd into a bowl and cover with cling film. Make sure the clingfilm is pressed against the curd, as this will stop a skin from forming. Put it in the fridge to cool down and thicken.

For the full recipe with measurements, head to the recipe card at the end of this post.

Do you have to use fresh passion fruit juice?

Unless you have access to a lot of passion fruits, I recommend using a pre-prepared juice/puree for this recipe. This is because you will only get a very small amount of fresh juice from each passion fruit, so you will need a lot of them. Make sure the juice or puree that you use is mostly real passion fruit juice, and not mostly water or sugar. I use this ready made passion fruit puree which is 90% passion fruit.

Do you have to use the lime zest and juice?

You don't have to, but I really recommend adding it as it adds so much extra flavour to the curd. If you don't want bits of zest in the final product, you can sieve/strain the curd before using.

Should passion fruit curd be made in a bain marie?

A bain marie is when you place a glass bowl over a pan of simmering water. As long as you have good control over the temperature of your hob or stove, and you can keep it nice and low, and you also stir the curd continuously, you do not need to use a bain marie. Some saucepans can cause a slight metallic taste in homemade curd, I recommend using a stainless steel or ceramic pan to make it if you experience this. If you don't have either of these types of pan, you can make it in a bain marie instead.

How can you use the leftover egg whites?

There will be two leftover egg whites from making this recipe. I often mix them with some whole eggs and make scrambled eggs or frittatas as this is a quick and easy way to use them. Or you can of course make a dessert with them like meringue, macarons or mousse. You don't have to use them straight away, they will keep in the fridge for two days, or they can be frozen for up to three months.

Do you need to add cornflour to thicken the curd?

No, your curd will thicken perfectly without it. In the very unlikely event of runny curd, you can mix 1 tbsp cornflour with a little water, then add the mixture to the curd and keep heating it gently until it thickens.

How should passion fruit curd be stored and can it be frozen?

The curd will keep in the fridge for 1-2 weeks in a sealed jar or tub, or you can freeze it in a suitable container for up to three months. You can also store it in sterilised jars.

Do you have to sieve/strain passion fruit curd?

It is up to you whether to sieve it or not. It depends if you mind the bits of lime zest when eating the curd. As long as you use a good quality zester, they should be very small and thin, and therefore fairly unnoticeable. The only reason you should definitely sieve your curd is if it is lumpy because of lumps of cooked egg in it (caused by over heating or not stirring the mixture constantly).

How can you use Passion Fruit Curd?

Fold it into whipped cream
Use it to top a pavlova
Spread it on toast
Dollop it on a scone with some clotted cream
Use it to fill a Victoria Sponge Cake
Fill pastry cases with it and top with Italian meringue
Use it to fill freshly made donuts
Or in my recipes using passion fruit curd!

More tips for making the Homemade Passion Fruit Curd:

You can use this recipe as a base to make other curds like blood orange curd or lime curd, just swap out the passion fruit puree for the same amount of lime juice , or blood orange juice (or any other citrus fruit). If you want to make lemon curd, check out my Homemade Lemon Curd recipe.
This passion fruit curd recipe is gluten free and suitable for vegetarians.
This recipe makes approximately 470g of passion fruit curd.

Troubleshooting

The passion fruit curd is lumpy

The main reason for this is because is has been heated at a too high temperature or it has not been stirred enough. The lumps are small bits of cooked egg (a bit like scrambled egg). They are harmless, but I do advise either sieving the curd to remove them or once the curd has cooled down enough you can use a blender to blitz the curd until it's smooth throughout. The other reason for lumps is the addition of lime zest, however if you use a good quality zester and only take the top layer of zest (avoiding the white pith) the zest should be very fine and barely noticeable.

The passion fruit curd won't thicken and is too thin

It is very unlikely that this curd recipe will be runny, but if it does happen you can mix 1 tbsp cornflour with a little water, then add the mixture to the curd and keeping heating it gently until it thickens. Homemade curd thickens more as it cools, so don't rush to add anything extra as you may just need to let it cool.

The passion fruit curd is too thick

You can add more lime juice to thin it out, just add a little at a time and whisk in well until you're happy with the consistency. You do not need to reheat the curd.

Anything else

My number one tip for getting the best results is to read through this whole page of tips and recommendations before starting, and follow the recipe exactly. If you have any questions about this recipe, or if something went wrong and you need help, please use the comment form below and I will get back to you. You can also get in touch with me on my Twitter, Instagram or Facebook. I'd love to hear from you!

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